Roasted Garlic White Pizza with Macadamia Ricotta Salata & Spinach

Chris and I don’t have cable and don’t watch shows on television. We do, however, have Netflix and a DVD player with a projector and a big white wall.

We don’t watch too many television shows because, well, we don’t feel like it. We do have our favorites that we watch over and over and over again: Arrested Development, Flight of the Conchords, the British version of The Office. There are a few shows that I got hooked on years ago when they first premiered and because I either love the show (30 Rock) or I have an obsessive-compulsive need to finish a series once I’ve started them even though I no longer care about the characters or the story (How I Met Your Mother, Weeds, Entourage), I watch each new season every year as it arrives on Netflix. Other than that, Chris and I are movie-watchers.

This show is so different from anything we normally watch. We don’t usually care for anything too dramatic, but this show sucked us right in. The day after that “one episode” all I could think about was watching more. That night, we watched two more episodes. The next night we watched three. The characters and plot lines began popping up in our daily conversations- even our texts! While watching this show, we both turn into teenage girls. When one of our favorite characters says something wonderful, we both exclaim “I just love her.” We watch, jaws dropped, as each plot twist unfolds and gasp at every new scandal. At one particularly shocking moment, Chris actually turned to me and said “I literally just stopped breathing.”

And the show that has cast this spell over us? Downton Abbey. In a very short period of time, we have become obsessed with this show. If we drank regularly, we probably could create a drinking game around the number of times I exclaim “Maggie Smith!” We only pause Downton Abbey for extreme situations, such as one of us having to use the restroom, needing to make popcorn, or if we need to discuss a particularly surprising revelation on the show. One night however, while we were watching the final episode of Season 1, Chris paused the show and looked at me.

“Are you kidding me with this?” he asked me with great intensity in his eyes. I thought he was referring to show, but nothing really important had happened yet.

Chris gestured at the pizza sitting on the plate in front of him. It was a white pizza, his favorite kind of pizza before going vegan, with a white sauce made of roasted garlic, cashews, and pureed cauliflower. Underneath that thick, garlicky, creamy sauce laid a bed of spinach and it was topped with crumbled macadamia ricotta salata. It was as beautiful as it was insanely delicious. “Are you kidding me with this pizza?” Chris continued. “This is the best pizza I’ve ever had Ever. In my whole life. Where did you come up with this?”

I wanted to get back to the show, but I had to agree with him. The pizza was pretty amazing. I was inspired a few weeks ago when Bobbie shared a recipe for a white pizza she had made and I remembered how much Chris used to love them. He always loved it when they were nice and simple with garlic undertones. Though the pizza would have been perfect with just the sauce and spinach, I wanted to add a little extra oomph with crumbles of ricotta salata on top, and I thought macadamia nuts would give it the extra richness I was looking for. There was even enough leftover sauce and ricotta to have the same pizza the next night as we began Season 2. It was exactly what I wanted to share with Chris as we watched the season 1 finale and it (the white pizza and the finale) turned out much better than I’d hoped.

As our conversation turned toward this pizza and how incredible it was, for a moment, Downtown Abbey didn’t even matter. But just for a moment.

Combine all of the ingredients in the bowl of a food processor and process until a smooth ball forms. Taste and add more salt if necessary. Place in an airtight container and chill until ready to use. This can be made a day or two in advance, if needed.

for the roasted garlic white sauce

Start by roasting your garlic. Preheat the oven to 400. Peel both heads of garlic of their outer layers of skin so that the cloves are exposed. Cut about 1/2 an inch or so of the top of the bulb so that the tips of the cloves are exposed. Place them on a large piece of aluminum foil. Lightly drizzle with olive oil and use your fingers to massage the oil in. Wrap the bulbs up tightly in the aluminum foil and place in the oven. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until soft when touched. Remove from oven and let cool until you are comfortable touching/handling it.

Mix the almond milk with the apple cider vinegar and set aside to allow it to sour.

Meanwhile, steam your cauliflower. Fill a pot up with about 1-2 inches of water. Bring to a boil. Place your cauliflower florets in a steamer basket and place the steamer basket in the post and cover. Let the cauliflower steam until soft, and easily pierced with a fork. Remove and let cool for a few minutes.

Once the garlic is cool enough to handle, gently squeeze each clove of its contents. Place all of the garlic, removed from the bulbs, into a food processor. Add the cauliflower and the rest of the white sauce ingredients. Process until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.

for the pizza

Increase the heat of the oven to 475. Roll your link(pizza dough,https://keepinitkind.com/easy-cheezy-pizza/) out into desired shape and place on a pizza peel, stone, or baking sheet.

Heat a frying pan over medium heat. Add your spinach, along with about 1-2 tablespoons of water. Stir and sauté until the spinach has just begun to wilt. Remove from heat.

Spread the spinach out on the rolled out pizza dough, leaving about 1/2 an inch around the edge for the crust. Spoon the white sauce on top of the spinach until the dough is covered, leaving that 1/2 inch around the edge for the crust. Crumble bits of the macadamia ricotta on top of the sauce, using about 1/2 of the (ricotta) recipe.

Place the pizza in the oven and bake for 10-13 minutes, until crust has risen and just begun to brown around the edges. Remove from oven, slice and serve. Enjoy!

Downton abbey…we watched the first 2 seasons on hulu got hooked ….love that show…but too long in between seasons …. lots of Kleenex for this last season that was just on…
Use to love white pizza this looks amazing 🙂

Thanks, Michelle! We’re down to the last 2 episodes of season 3 now. We’re so obsessed with this show! It’s pretty silly because we never get like this. We’re usually like “Ugh, how melodramatic!” and turn it off, but not this. It’s just too good.

That white pizza looks so insane! No wonder Chris was freaking out!. Downton Abbey confession. My husband was out of town so I was bored after putting the kids to bed so I surfed Netflix and found Downton Abbey I started episode one from season one…. then finished the whole series in one night. I couldn’t stop! Is season 2 on Netflix now? I don’t know if I should even check! xxSomer recently posted…Vegan Cherry Garcia Ice Cream

thank you! Seasons 2 & 3 are on Netflix, but you have to have them mailed to you (it’s not on instant watch). There was a long wait for Season 2 and we just couldn’t wait so Chris went out and bought it one day. We’re sending it to my grandmother so she can watch season 2 as well (she doesn’t get netflix in the mail). And you definitely should watch them- it just keeps getting better and better. xoxo

I’d have to say that I’ve missed the DA train…maybe I’ll hop on sometime! I’m usually not one to watch what every one else is but confession: I DID watch the Bible on History Channel and its as awesome as everyone said it was. Too bad its over 🙁
Did anyone else watch it?

I can be the same way about having to ‘finish’ shows. I still watch Grey’s Anatomy even though its really not that good anymore… I feel like I was watching it from the beginning and I need to be there til the end! Favorite show though? Hard to say, the only ones I’ve been watching lately are The Walking Dead and The Bachelor. Good, but not great.Kim @ Cooking in the City recently posted…Easter Enchiladas

I don’t know what it is- It bugs me and bugs me until I go catch up on the episodes, not because I really care about the show, but because I need to complete the series. I’ve not seen the Walking Dead but I hear great things- It sounds like one I may need to check out. Eventually. 😉

Oh man this looks so good! Like you and Chris we depend on Netflix for our “tv” entertainment, although we have been buying episodes of Walking Dead through the Play Station Store, we are hooked on that show!We loved Dexter (still waiting for the new season!), Breaking Bad, Weeds (just started season 8!), Hell on Wheels and House of Cards. We definitely are movie people over TV shows…I am so like you, I need to finish a series (How I met your mother!)- seriously though, back to this pizza- vegan ricotta salata, genius! Justin’s favorite pizza is also a white pizza, but he likes his with olive oil, garlic, almanese, black olives and tomato slices 🙂Heather recently posted…maple chocolate cream pie

Thank you! And thank you for telling me that Season 8 of Weeds is out! I hadn’t checked in a while, and that is one season premiere I was looking forward to. 🙂 And I keep hearing about the Walking Dead so I have a feeling we’ll be checking it out someday.

As far as Downton Abbey, I started watching it after the third season was finished. I am finished seasons one and two and most of three. I can’t bring myself to watch the finale because I know what is going to happen at the very end and I can’t bear it! Darn Facebook ruined it for me!!!

Thank you, Deb! I had heard that there was a huge uproar about the season 3 finale (I think I even heard that someone dies), but I didn’t pay much attention. It was enough, though, to make me curious to see what all the fuss was about this series. We’re down to the last 2 episodes of season 3 too and we are on the edge of our seats!

Oh my Kristy. Pizza is one of the few things I still crave all the time from my pre-vegan days. This recipe looks so delicious I’m sure I wouldn’t miss my old dried out Pizza Hut bloat-filled pie ♥
I love your pics and you write so beautifully I can taste that cheeze!
Great post.
Favorite TV show right now is a HBO series ‘Wired’ but usually you’ll find me watching Veria most nights. (Quite a contrast, I know)
Thanks for this, it’s on my to try list ;0

Everytime I see one of your pizza recipes, I really just want to eat the screen. Luckily I managed to avoid liquid crytal display pieces in my mouth – until now. It might be healthier to just RUN to the kitchen and try this out. It looks delectable.
Love, Lara

Great looking pizza! We became obsessed with Downton also. We’ve finished season 4 and are anxiously awaiting a new season already!Jamie | Thrifty Veggie Mama recently posted…Weekly Meal Plan | Week of April 1, 2013

I am totally with Chris on this one. You have got to be joking, this pizza can’t be real!! 😉 Looks simply amazing my dear!

We have such similar taste in tv it’s ridiculous. I too am simply watching How I Met Your Mother from a need of knowing ow it all ends! I have yet to watch Downtown Abbey, only because I know I will get obsessed and I simply don’t have time for that right now! Haha

Ha! Thank you, Gabby! And yes- I don’t really care about HIMYM except for wanting to know how it all ends. And it’s one of those shows that you need details from past episodes to understand what happens later. So I watch every episode, usually while folding laundry or some other chore. 😉

We are primarily a Netflix house, too. The only shows I really watch on tv are The Office (because I have to finish it out!), Modern Family, Whitney and Parks & Rec…that is if the antennae is working and I’m home. We watch a lot of series on Netflix. I’m slowly re-watching Arrested Development and we got sucked into The West Wing recently.Bobbie {the vegan crew} recently posted…This & Thats

Mmmm, this pizza was delicious. The crust had a satisfying crunch, toppings were great, and I didn’t feel all “heavy” afterward as one normally would with a similar non-vegan pizza. Thanks for the meal, Kristy!

As for favorite TV show …probably Big Bang Theory and How I Met Your Mother at least currently.

This pizza sounds wonderful! I am making it tonight. I could not get raw macadamia nuts, only salted, so I am going to omit the salt and taste it before adding any. May not need it. I just hope the salted nuts don’t ruin what I think will be a really delicious pie! Thanks for the recipe!

I just finished eating this and let me tell you it was OUTSTANDING! I’ve never had a white pizza in my pre-vegan days so have no comparison, but I absolutely love it. The “ricotta’ is salty and tangy and when it browns… yum! Thank you so much for this fabulous recipe!

My boyfriend and I are huge (make that HUGE) pizza fans and when I saw this recipe I simply wanted to run into the kitchen and make it…but: two things:
1) I don’t have white miso and I don’t actually know what it is… is there anything I could possibly subsitute it with?
2) I am allergic to apple (cooked, raw or processed) – what can I subsitute the apple vinegar with?
I would be very grateful for your suggestions – this could make our Valentine’s night 🙂
Thanks!
L.

Miso is fermented soy bean paste. It sounds gross but it actually adds amazing umami flavor to a dish that is hard to replicate. A small tub of mellow white miso is not too expensive and lasts forever. It’s a really good investment.

As for the apple cider vinegar, I would just replace it with the same amount of lemon juice. I hope that helps! Enjoy!

Ok, you convinced me. I’m making this.
One thing though, since you said there’s enough sauce and ricotta for a 2nd pizza, you think it would be ok to make 2 pizzas at the same time and freeze the 2nd one, or it’s best when freshly made?
Thank you for your wonderful recipes Kristy!

(you were so convincing that I might even start watching Downtwon Abbey, we’ll see though…)

I’m also curious as to how well this would freeze. My family has always been big on pizza, and it’s so hard to resist, even though I know the cheese will make me feel sick and guilty. My best defenseis having delicious vegan pizza always at hand, and frozen pizzas are the only real way that works. Did you try freezing one? Did it reheat well?

I never pre-make pizzas and freeze them because my freezer isn’t big enough for those sorts of shenanigans. I do know, however, that the sauce and the dough can be frozen and the ricotta cheese will keep in the fridge for a couple of weeks. You could make the elements in advance and then reassemble later or I would give it a try. Make the pizzas without the ricotta cheese and freeze them. I would wait to add the ricotta cheese until just before baking because I feel like it could change consistency when frozen. Good luck!

I made the macadamia ricotta today to go with grilled veggies for lettuce wraps with cauliflower patties. We LOVED it. I omitted the miso and increased the nutritional yeast a bit until the taste was just right. Next time I will reduce the sea salt a bit as I had to add additional lemon juice to offset the saltiness. Thanks for the recipe. It was delicious! Will definitely make this again.

Ok so I’ve been reading through your blog (like a book) and pinning like WHOA and I haven’t left a comment yet but this recipe is it. I miss white pie more than words can describe. It was always my absolute favorite and lately I’ve been craving it intensely. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU.

Delicious pizza!! I made this for dinner tonight and received a similar reaction from my husband as soon as he took his first bite! I think the words ‘oh my god’ were muttered frequently by both of us as we devoured our slices! I did make some substitutions (I require a gluten free crust so I used one of my regular ones with cauliflower and GF flours), supplemented the wilted spinach with some additional wilted collard greens, and added some sliced roasted tomatoes on top of the white sauce. We both LOVED it!! Will definitely be making this again in our regular pizza rotation! Thanks Kristy!

I’m so excited to prepare this pizza!! I’ve always preferred white pizza to red sauce type. One question though, I cannot tolerate nutritional yeast. Will the pizza still be great without it? Or do you suggest a replacement for that one ingredient?